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ApoVax
ApoVax is a recombinant protein-based vaccine consisting of SA and an immunoregulatory protein. The technology combines this chimeric protein with an antigen, a tumor or infectious disease marker that stimulates an immune response, to create a disease-specific vaccine or therapeutic. The presence of streptavidin allows for 1) the formation of a tetrameric immunoprotein able to crosslink and activate its receptor, and 2) if needed, the rapid attachment of biotinylated antigens which form the immunoreactive component of the vaccine.
Lead Immunotherapy - ApoVax104
ApoImmune's lead immunotherapy is ApoVax104, a novel, flexible, vaccine platform technology being applied to cancer and infectious diseases. ApoVax104 is a recombinant protein consisting of SA and the extracellular domain of the co-stimulatory protein 4-1BB ligand (4-1BBL). 4-1BBL was chosen as a component of vaccines because of its pleiotropic effects on various immune cells of innate, adaptive, and regulatory immune cells.
ApoVax104 is then combined with any antigen or tumor marker to create a potent and efficient disease-specific classic vaccine. The ApoVax104 technology is being applied to cancer and infectious diseases enabling the creation of disease-specific vaccines that have clinical utility in a multitude of diseases representing many multi-billion dollar markets. The flexibility of the ApoVax104 technology is demonstrated in the following figure.
In preclinical studies, ApoVax104 has proven to be much more effective and less toxic than two other benchmark vaccine components currently being tested in late stage clinical trials by large pharmaceutical companies, Monophosphoryl Lipid A (MPL) and CpG oligonucleotide (CpG). In addition, vaccination with ApoVax104 resulted in better efficacy and undetectable toxicity as compared to an agonistic Ab against the 4-1BB receptor, currently being pursued for cancer clinical trials.
The Company's first product will be a therapeutic vaccine for treating human papillomavirus (HPV) infection and cervical cancer in women using ApoVax104 and the HPV16 oncogene E7 as antigen. A Phase I clinical trial is expected to begin in Q2 2010. ApoImmune has licensed 4-1BBL from a major pharmaceutical company, which management believes provides the Company freedom to practice the ApoVax104 platform.
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